Page 2297 - Week 08 - Tuesday, 12 August 2014
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have got then is two government-run organisations soaking up subsidy after subsidy, year after year, to the detriment of the rest of the people of Canberra. You only have to go through the CIE report to see that bus rapid transit has a much better economic case behind it. We have some of the other arguments about jobs. The jobs will come from other parts of Canberra. We are told that there is this property uplift. Yes, and as CIE says, the increase in land value may come at the cost of people in the outer suburbs who do not have this service.
People are parochial because this will affect them. People like those on the committee of the Tuggeranong Community Council are standing up for their community and saying, “We are not getting the service. We are paying for the service. It may take jobs out of our region and it may affect our land values.” In this case I would be parochial too.
People have a right to be parochial if the case has not been made. This is an announcement that was made and now we are working on the case to justify the decision that has kept this government in office, rather than the decision that should have been made that we are after a decision that better serves all of the people of Canberra.
It would be easy perhaps to make the case to say that Civic to Woden to Tuggeranong might have been a better route. I could say as the member for Brindabella that we want the train to come to us first. I am sure all the members can make that case. But my understanding is that the route that would go from Belconnen via Civic to the airport has the most density, has the greatest number of employment sites, cultural facilities, transport hubs and makes a lot more sense.
But there is no sense in this decision, Madam Speaker. This is about emotion; it is about staying in government; it is about keeping the Greens sweet rather than looking after the people of the ACT and spending their money wisely and not committing them to a long-term burden that this white elephant might become if it is not done properly.
I commend the CIE report to people. It is interesting that in the government’s response to the estimates committee it states that they will release some information but not some other information, or release it after we have cut the deal and signed contracts. Of course, they immediately fell back to the “And by the way, commercial in confidence says that you probably will not get a great deal of it.” So much for the Chief Minister’s new era of openness and accountability. We are told, “We have made decisions behind closed doors. We are going to keep that information behind closed doors. You have to just accept that we are here for your benefit and not for us.” It does reek of emotional attachment. (Time expired.)
Question put.
That the proposed expenditure be agreed to.
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